A pair of dumbbells and an adjustable weight bench can be enough to create a tough workout. If you're used to doing all your weight training on a flat bench, switching the angle to an incline can shake up your training routine and lead to greater gains. In fact, you can work your whole body with just dumbbells and an incline bench.

The Best of Chest

Placing your bench at an incline for chest exercises targets the clavicular head of your pectorals, according to certified strength and conditioning specialist Joe Giandonato. In other words, pressing on an incline works your upper-chest more. Not only that, but it hits your shoulders harder too. A staple move is the incline dumbbell chest press, performed in exactly the same way as a flat dumbbell press, but with your bench set to between a 45- and 60-degree angle.

Back in the Limelight

Rest your non-lifting hand on the edge of an incline bench for dumbbell rows, or use the whole bench to perform chest supported rows. These involve lying on your front on the bench and holding a dumbbell in either hand with your arms straight. By using the incline bench for chest supported rows you can safely spread your scapular at the bottom of every repetition, notes Jason Ferruggia of Renegade Strength and Conditioning. It also means you can't cheat and use body momentum as you can with regular dumbbell rows.

Arm Yourself

When you need a stricter version of standing biceps curls to blast your biceps, switch to incline dumbbell curls. These target the long head of the biceps and the lower the angle of the bench, the more the long head has to work, according to trainer Charles Poliquin. Setting the angle too low can be stressful on the rotator cuffs in your shoulders, however, so put the angle as low as possible without hurting your shoulders. For triceps, perform extensions either holding a dumbbell in each hand, or one dumbbell in both hands. Get a good stretch on each rep and flex your triceps hard at the top of each rep. Anywhere from a 30-degree to a 60-degree angle will suffice here.

Legs Away

An incline bench works well for adding single-leg work into your training. Set the bench at a low incline and place your back foot on the end and your front foot out in front. With a dumbbell in each hand, squat as low as you can to perform Bulgarian split squats. Do all your reps on one side, then change which foot is on the bench. An even tougher version of these is the speed skater squat, performed by squatting all the way down until your back knee is just above the floor, rising up just halfway, then dropping back down to the bottom position again before returning to the top. All these moves together makes a single rep.

About the Author

Mike Samuels started writing for his own fitness website and local publications in 2008. He graduated from Peter Symonds College in the UK with A Levels in law, business and sports science, and is a fully qualified personal trainer, sports massage therapist and corrective exercise specialist with accreditations from Premier Global International.